Unnamed Second Husband of Zilphia

In the story's last section Zilphia returns to Jefferson after a three-year absence, "in mourning," with "a plain gold band" on her hand, "and a child" (381). She tells people about "her second marriage and her husband's death" (381), but it seems most likely that this husband is a figment of Miss Zilphia's imagination and a way to explain that child. In any case, just like the painter whom Zilphia did marry, he's never given a name, and so effectively she remains 'Miss Zilphia' - the name the narrator uses throughout.